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eloise_bradbooks's Reviews (801)
4.5 Well... that was one hell of an experience.
I think Taylor Jenkins Reid's books are just meant for audio format because she has a way of writing characters who really speak to you. That captures not only your attention but also your heart.
Kudos to everyone involved in the making of the audiobook. That object is a work of art.
It did take me a little while to REALLY appreciate the characters but once I realised how complex and real they felt, I also realised how much I cared.
I'm a little disappointed we didn't get much from other members of the band, other than Daisy and Billy (and a bit of Karen and Graham), I couldn't tell you their names... but then again, I guess there's some normalcy to that since that's basically true about the band's work and fame.
TJR just seems to GET the industries she writes about. They feel so real and gritty and full of the perfect mixture of darkness and light.
I cannot stop recommending her books enough.
I think Taylor Jenkins Reid's books are just meant for audio format because she has a way of writing characters who really speak to you. That captures not only your attention but also your heart.
Kudos to everyone involved in the making of the audiobook. That object is a work of art.
It did take me a little while to REALLY appreciate the characters but once I realised how complex and real they felt, I also realised how much I cared.
I'm a little disappointed we didn't get much from other members of the band, other than Daisy and Billy (and a bit of Karen and Graham), I couldn't tell you their names... but then again, I guess there's some normalcy to that since that's basically true about the band's work and fame.
TJR just seems to GET the industries she writes about. They feel so real and gritty and full of the perfect mixture of darkness and light.
I cannot stop recommending her books enough.
DNF @75% (which gives me the right to rate it, I really tried to finish it but i'm not wasting any more time). 1.5 / 5
This book thinks it is so much funnier and smarter than it actually is.
None of the characters are interesting, therefore the plot doesn't interest me.
I think I'm really fed up with the lack of queer rep Jay and Amie give us. 2 centuries in the future and their universe is still heteronormative and completely reject that gender isn't binary and it's starting to piss me off.
Make Ty and Kal a couple, you cowards.
It wasn't completely bad but just SO annoyingly mediocre i hate to rate it low...
This book thinks it is so much funnier and smarter than it actually is.
None of the characters are interesting, therefore the plot doesn't interest me.
I think I'm really fed up with the lack of queer rep Jay and Amie give us. 2 centuries in the future and their universe is still heteronormative and completely reject that gender isn't binary and it's starting to piss me off.
Make Ty and Kal a couple, you cowards.
It wasn't completely bad but just SO annoyingly mediocre i hate to rate it low...
A very solid 4.5 cause this book was gooood.
Alex and Henry are soft and loveable and well constructed and soft and dumb boys in love and soft and I couldn't stop reading.
Alex and Henry are soft and loveable and well constructed and soft and dumb boys in love and soft and I couldn't stop reading.
Shaun David Hutchinson is one of my favourite authors.
In all of his books you can feel that he's been through some tough times and he knows exactly how to write about it in fiction.
In this however, he goes back to his teen years to show us exactly what was up, how he realised he was gay (then later ace), how he struggled with mental health, self-harm and many other issues. He also clearly shows that he is gay and depressed but one isn't the cause of the other. Both coexist but don't have to as a default.
But ultimately he tells us this: You'll find yourself, you'll find your place, you'll find ways to manage your mental health issues. And no things don't miraculously go away but you'll find people and places who will make you feel just a little safer and like you do actually belong in this world.
After all, "we are the ants, and we keep marching on".
In all of his books you can feel that he's been through some tough times and he knows exactly how to write about it in fiction.
In this however, he goes back to his teen years to show us exactly what was up, how he realised he was gay (then later ace), how he struggled with mental health, self-harm and many other issues. He also clearly shows that he is gay and depressed but one isn't the cause of the other. Both coexist but don't have to as a default.
But ultimately he tells us this: You'll find yourself, you'll find your place, you'll find ways to manage your mental health issues. And no things don't miraculously go away but you'll find people and places who will make you feel just a little safer and like you do actually belong in this world.
After all, "we are the ants, and we keep marching on".
3.5
Everything about this book was good, but not quite polished enough for me. My main issue is that not much actually got resolved and left me wondering why the book stopped where it did...
Not every plot point of a story needs to be resolved, but most of the interesting ones we spent time going through in this book ended up not being even slightly talked about.
Mostly the mother's story but also Gordon's.
I am VERY interested in getting proper explanations about what's up with them, the repercussions of what they did in the second half of this book.
Also, I even wanted more of the drag scene. I wanted more interaction with Kings and Queens and every other types of people there, how they do their thing, how the shows go on... It's an interesting topic we don't often get in books, especially YA, so I was clearly left needing more of everything.
I'm happy the romance (which isn't the main focus of this book btw) got resolved but that clearly wasn't what interested me the most.
I definitely still recommend this book if you're looking for a young girl letting go of dead roads and finding the road she didn't know she needed until she found it and finally felt at home on it.
It's especially nice seeing it through the eyes of a queer biracial 17 year old girl.
Everything about this book was good, but not quite polished enough for me. My main issue is that not much actually got resolved and left me wondering why the book stopped where it did...
Not every plot point of a story needs to be resolved, but most of the interesting ones we spent time going through in this book ended up not being even slightly talked about.
Mostly the mother's story but also Gordon's.
I am VERY interested in getting proper explanations about what's up with them, the repercussions of what they did in the second half of this book.
Also, I even wanted more of the drag scene. I wanted more interaction with Kings and Queens and every other types of people there, how they do their thing, how the shows go on... It's an interesting topic we don't often get in books, especially YA, so I was clearly left needing more of everything.
I'm happy the romance (which isn't the main focus of this book btw) got resolved but that clearly wasn't what interested me the most.
I definitely still recommend this book if you're looking for a young girl letting go of dead roads and finding the road she didn't know she needed until she found it and finally felt at home on it.
It's especially nice seeing it through the eyes of a queer biracial 17 year old girl.
Nick deserves the world, Seeley deserves the world, Elouise's dad deserves the world. It's a shame our main character is so annoying and can't appreciate the great people surrounding her.
Honestly, she can be insufforable...
She does grow and make the last few chapters of this book very fun.
At least we got queerness that isn't ever questioned or faced with criticism, a great supportive parent, some good frienships and... a main character with (ALMOST) the same first name as me!!!
Honestly, she can be insufforable...
She does grow and make the last few chapters of this book very fun.
At least we got queerness that isn't ever questioned or faced with criticism, a great supportive parent, some good frienships and... a main character with (ALMOST) the same first name as me!!!
2.5 ~ I appreciate the amount of work that must have gotten into writing this book. Some parts are very nice and pretty interesting.
Buuuuuut. It was so complex and twisted that I got really confused and didn't even care that much about the characters.
A couple of things bugged me enough to take away another star from my rating:
- One guy's shape/weight is described in a veeery harmful way, I was SHOCKED.
- (Mostly) Every action in this story is made by the men. The few women who are present tend to be the recipient of the men's actions. Women didn't have their own opinions or ideas. It was all. Just. Men. (Mostly)
Buuuuuut. It was so complex and twisted that I got really confused and didn't even care that much about the characters.
A couple of things bugged me enough to take away another star from my rating:
- One guy's shape/weight is described in a veeery harmful way, I was SHOCKED.
- (Mostly) Every action in this story is made by the men. The few women who are present tend to be the recipient of the men's actions. Women didn't have their own opinions or ideas. It was all. Just. Men. (Mostly)
Okay, first let me say that it was amazing to read about a main character who was not only of colour but was also a biromantic asexual girl.
The biroace representation was the reason I picked this book up and on that point it Did. Not. Disappoint.
If it weren't for that representation, which we rarely get to see or read about, I probably wouldn't have picked this book up. And that's probably the reason I didn't really enjoy the other aspects of the story.
It was okay. The romance was sweet and it was nice to have discussions around consent and asexuality and queerness in general, but I didn't really feel attached to any of the characters. I was more interested in the relationship between Alice and Ryan and Feenie however that was completely pushed aside and wasn't even resolved in the end...
The writing was fine, just not my type. (The amount of brackets became annoying). (Like, really... three in a row?) (ALL of them were unnecessary).
Another annoying aspect was the fact that they lacked strong communication. Alice did start interesting conversations but never went to the end of them. For some reason they always stopped halfway, without reaching the goal of their conversation... which not only means it was moving slowly, but it's basically a case of if they had communicated better, things would have been so much simpler.
Altogether, I'm still thankful for this book mostly for it's representation I would recommend it and I will talk about it positively. The rest of the story just didn't tick with me I hope it does for you.
The biroace representation was the reason I picked this book up and on that point it Did. Not. Disappoint.
If it weren't for that representation, which we rarely get to see or read about, I probably wouldn't have picked this book up. And that's probably the reason I didn't really enjoy the other aspects of the story.
It was okay. The romance was sweet and it was nice to have discussions around consent and asexuality and queerness in general, but I didn't really feel attached to any of the characters. I was more interested in the relationship between Alice and Ryan and Feenie however that was completely pushed aside and wasn't even resolved in the end...
The writing was fine, just not my type. (The amount of brackets became annoying). (Like, really... three in a row?) (ALL of them were unnecessary).
Another annoying aspect was the fact that they lacked strong communication. Alice did start interesting conversations but never went to the end of them. For some reason they always stopped halfway, without reaching the goal of their conversation... which not only means it was moving slowly, but it's basically a case of if they had communicated better, things would have been so much simpler.
Altogether, I'm still thankful for this book mostly for it's representation I would recommend it and I will talk about it positively. The rest of the story just didn't tick with me I hope it does for you.
4.5 ~ Why did it take so long for me to read this book?
I can't speak on the accuracy of the representation since I am not transgender, but it is #OwnVoices and has positive reviews from trans readers.
I found the gender identity parts brilliant. The perfect amount of info was given, in the perfect way so it wasn't info-dumpy or too hard to understand. It was part of Amanda's story just like anything else.
I loved the very nuanced and realistic relationship she has with both her parents and every other relationship/friendship she forms really does seem realistic and relatable and quite moving.
I believe this book is going to become, if it isn't already, a classic.
The author's note does clear up the minor issue I could have had to share but so I don't have to. :)
I can't speak on the accuracy of the representation since I am not transgender, but it is #OwnVoices and has positive reviews from trans readers.
I found the gender identity parts brilliant. The perfect amount of info was given, in the perfect way so it wasn't info-dumpy or too hard to understand. It was part of Amanda's story just like anything else.
I loved the very nuanced and realistic relationship she has with both her parents and every other relationship/friendship she forms really does seem realistic and relatable and quite moving.
I believe this book is going to become, if it isn't already, a classic.
The author's note does clear up the minor issue I could have had to share but so I don't have to. :)